In IBSi FinTech Journal’s The Big Interview, L Guru Raghavendran, Senior Vice President – Presales & Product Innovation at Azentio Software, reflects on the company’s handling of pandemic-related challenges and on the digital lending space.

Excerpts from the Interview

Focus on Digital Solutions

The real challenge during the pandemic was the heightened demands from financial service customers for quicker online service and more timely updates, coupled with the pressure on our clients (lenders) to compete profitably in a crowded marketplace. Azentio was quick to provide digital solutions to its clients specifically for onboarding and customer servicing.

The idea was to enable our clients accelerate digital transformation. We extended our focus to API-first platforms making them more open to integrate with other channels and data sources. Regulations embracing new technologies, also accelerated the drive for more meaningful and effective innovation using our products.

Meeting Customers’ Rising Expectations

Azentio, being a focused product player, has a clearly laid out roadmap to create cloud-based digital technology solutions for financial institutions.

To meet customers’ rising expectations in an AI-powered digital era, we have been able to come up with propositions and experiences that are intelligent, personalised, and based on a detailed understanding of customers’ past behaviours.

Today, Fintech and smaller independent players are competing in the commercial lending space and differentiating themselves from traditional banks with their market offerings, customer experience, and speed of delivery. The forced move to automation and digitisation due to pandemic, relative complexity of the commercial lending processes, and rising customer expectations have led to several challenges for banks.